ST.
GEORGE, Utah – Fresh off a motivating sophomore season in which she
started at middle blocker on the Corona del Sol High School girls varsity
volleyball team, Aubrey Pancratz was prepared to handle anything, even a
position change in arguably the biggest tournament of her competitive
career.

Pancratz
was just as dominant last summer when playing right side on Arizona’s High
Performance team, runners-up in the silver division of the Volley Classic,
an annual tournament used to evaluate prospects for USA Volleyball’s
Junior Olympic squad.

“It’s
really good for experience and exposure,” said Pancratz, who managed to
make her presence felt on the prestigious team for the second straight
summer, despite seeing decreased playing time at the Dixie Center.

Moving
to right side was a big change because Pancratz was forced to maintain her
ground instead of being allowed to roam freely along the net. She also had
to set more than she did as a middle blocker.

“The
toughest part about right side is that you have to set,” Pancratz said.
“As a middle, you’re running around a lot more. As a right side, you
just set up to block.”

Learning
a new position enables Pancratz to be much more appealing to college
coaches, some of whom traveled to St. George from volleyball powerhouses,
such as Florida, Long Beach State and UCLA.

NCAA
rules prohibit coaches from having direct communication with high school
student-athletes until after their junior seasons, although Pancratz already
has received letters from several colleges. She wants to play at a Division
I school along the West Coast.

“She
has shown a lot of character, and she puts her team first,” said Glendale
Community College coach Lisa Stuck, who guided Arizona’s High Performance
team.

Pancratz
made the position change seem easy by excelling in the fundamentals that
have enabled her to have so much success in her career.

She
showed great lateral movement, her footwork looked flawless and her court
awareness was outstanding in eight Volley Classic matches played under the
rally scoring system that was used by Arizona high schools for the first
time this fall.

“She’s
a really good team player, and she brings some intangibles to the court,”
said Desert Vista coach Molly West, who coaches Pancratz’s Ahwatukee-based
Arizona Foothills club team. “Players like to play around her because she
has a good personality on the court.”